This idea came to me yesterday. I was wondering, do you utilize any tricks to help you enjoy a book more?

For instance, I tend to associate characters with actors which helps me visualize what's going on in the book and also adds a little extra character to each character Typically I'll try to get a handle on each character's physical description and disposition before I assign an actor to them, but once I pick one, I stick with it. I find it makes the book a lot more enjoyable for me._________________
"I believe toys resonate with us as humans, we can hold them them, it's tactile, real! They are totems for our extended beliefs and imaginations. A fetish for ideas that hold as much interest and passion as old religious relics for some. We display them in our homes. They show who we are. They are signals for similar thinking people. A way we connect with each other...and I guess thats why I do toys. That connection." -Ashley Wood

Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 11:15 am

Message

ReepicheepMaster

Joined: 05 Feb 2008Posts: 7613Location: Sailing into the unknown

One word: tea. Tea makes every book better.

I also like to read out loud if I'm able to. Unless I can find someone willing to listen (which is rare), I normally do this when I'm home alone._________________
Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter east.

Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 11:40 am

Message

Caedus_16Master

Joined: 15 Apr 2008Posts: 5226Location: Korriban

I usually put an instrumental score of some sort in the background, and Reep's tea idea is one I also utilize. But nothing works better than a blanket and a warm as heck fire!

But nothing fixes bad writing, so sometimes nothing helps lol._________________Perfection is a lifelong pursuit requiring sacrifice. The only way to get it quicker is to sacrifice the most.

Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 12:08 pm

Message

Taral-DLOSMaster

Joined: 23 Nov 2010Posts: 1943Location: Ontario, Canada

I had to read your first post to figure out what you meant, because my first instinct based on the subject header was "You need other things to enjoy books? I find books enjoyable in their own right." And then was reminded of an 11-year-old I overheard at the movie theatre telling her sister that she preferred the movie because "reading takes two weeks and only uses one sense and makes my head hurt."

Then I read your first post, and saw that you meant "enjoying books MORE."

I'm a fan of a comfy chair and a blanket, with a liquid appropriate for the day and time (coffee, water, juice, pop, or ethanol, as appropriate), a box of tissues (I'm congested about 330/365 days a year), and a cat within reach.

Thankfully, most of my Sunday mornings are exactly like that, with my living room reading chair and ottoman, the soft blanket that has a foot-pocket, a cup of coffee or water, a book or several comic books, and my cat sleeping at my feet._________________"I'm...from Earth."

I prefer to read when things are quite. I am a student so in most classes reading is mandatory, but i also enjoy reading on my own. Reading is a great way to escape to new worlds. Also, when you read make sure you are not distracted. if you are trying to get a big chuck of a book read do not look at your phone or get up and walk around. Sit down in a quite tech free room and read a book._________________-Zak Arranda

Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 6:25 pm

Message

Zak ArrandaPadawan

Joined: 15 Feb 2013Posts: 18

Quiet*_________________-Zak Arranda

Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 7:06 pm

Message

Dog-Poop_WalkerMaster

Joined: 28 Jan 2012Posts: 1481Location: Soul of Cinder

I don't have a specific trick, but snaking is always good. Eating a normal meal, though, is tricky, especially with a knife and fork. I usually lay down with the book propped up on my knees and the plate on my chest. You can run into some problems with a bowl of soup that way._________________The spirit can die when the force that's crushing it is great enough. By raining bullets down on the silent faces, already turned away from the world, you thought you could destroy the face of our truth. But we have faith in a different force. That hopeless hope is what sustains us now. My comrades are more numerous than your bullets, and more patient than your executioners.

Posted: Sun Aug 11, 2013 9:46 am

Message

JainaSoloMaster

Joined: 04 Sep 2012Posts: 577Location: In front of my laptop

Wow, how come I haven't seen this topic before?
Anyways! What I always do (apart from the actor thing, which I also do ) is to read when I'm home alone. That is when my weird fun begins. When I find a particular scene in the book which really had me laughing or touched or something, I act it out (in a way reading aloud). I mimic hand movements and/or facial expressions (although the facial expressions are kind of instinctive which I do regardless of my surroundings eg. "He raised his eyebrow in confusion" *raises eyebrow*). It makes the book feel more alive to me! _________________We fight, we earn, we never learn. And through it all, the hero falls...
~Heroes, Mika~

Posted: Sun Aug 11, 2013 11:59 pm

Message

Dog-Poop_WalkerMaster

Joined: 28 Jan 2012Posts: 1481Location: Soul of Cinder

that's really funny._________________The spirit can die when the force that's crushing it is great enough. By raining bullets down on the silent faces, already turned away from the world, you thought you could destroy the face of our truth. But we have faith in a different force. That hopeless hope is what sustains us now. My comrades are more numerous than your bullets, and more patient than your executioners.

Someone I know happened across this technique while doing a chapter by chapter recap of a particularly terrible book, and I've 'borrowed' it, for my reading. That is to read the book, and pretend that some other characters from a certain TV show are commenting while you read. Like Jack and Karen from Will & Grace._________________I am a Star Wars fan. That doesn't mean that I hate or love Jar Jar. That doesn't mean I hate or love Lucas, or agree or disagree 100% with him. That doesn't mean I prefer the PT over the OT, or vice versa. That doesn't mean I hate the EU, or even love all of it (or even read all of it). These are not prerequisites. Being a man is not a prerequisite. Being a geek is not a prerequisite. The only prerequisite is that I love something about Star Wars. I am a Star Wars fan.

Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 3:02 pm

Message

AdmiralStevenPadawan

Joined: 20 Sep 2012Posts: 64Location: Cape Cod, MA

Zak Arranda wrote:

I prefer to read when things are quite. I am a student so in most classes reading is mandatory, but i also enjoy reading on my own. Reading is a great way to escape to new worlds. Also, when you read make sure you are not distracted. if you are trying to get a big chuck of a book read do not look at your phone or get up and walk around. Sit down in a quite tech free room and read a book.

I get most of my reading in while commuting to work; I have an hour train ride each way, so it's a great way to kill time. However, I'm a visual person, thus the reason it took me years before I got into reading, so I wind up trying to visualize the locations in my mind. I guess that's why I liked the PT so much: great visualizations with regards to Coruscant and other worlds. I also try to get an mental image of what the characters look like.